Jay Monahan 'Certain' The PGA Tour - Saudi PIF Merger Will Be Agreed Upon, Is Officially A Man With Nothing Left To Lose
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan addressed the media ahead of this week's Tour Championship for his annual 'State of the Tour' press conference. While Monahan and the Tour tried to keep some of the focus on the season's final event in Atlanta, the Tour's framework to merge with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF) was at the forefront of everyone's mind.
Monahan is well aware of the uncertain situation surrounding his own future and the future of the PGA Tour. Therefore, he did his best to get out in front of things by essentially guaranteeing that the framework agreement between the Tour and the Saudi PIF will overcome any hurdles, like the U.S. Government, for example.
Monahan also made it clear that, as outlined in the framework, the PGA Tour will have the biggest seat at the table of professional golf despite the Saudis reportedly set to invest billions into a yet-to-be-named for-profit venture.
"In terms of the PGA TOUR leading our sport forward, again, when you go back to our framework agreement, we have put an end to the divisive and distracting litigation, we have safeguards that are in place to put the PGA TOUR in a position to control our future, and as I sit here today, I am confident that we will reach an agreement that achieves a positive outcome for the PGA TOUR and our fans. I see it and I'm certain of it," Monahan stated.
Jay Monahan is confident the PGA Tour - Saudi PIF agreement will move forward. (Getty Images)
Jay Monahan Is Very Much On A One-Way Street At This Point
This is, of course, what Monahan has to say. He has to show the utmost confidence that the merger will move forward and that the Tour will be in the driver's seat of whatever this new professional golf vehicle may end up being.
While Monahan can be confident in his own abilities and future negotiations, he does have a policy board to keep in mind.
When asked what happens if the board decides that the Saudi investment is a negative instead of a positive, Monahan doubled down with his confidence. He also admitted that there is no backup investment plan if a bump in the road derails this entire agreement.
"Well right now my focus is on the negotiations with PIF. And that's where all my energy and attention is. But I think given the amount of attention that our framework agreement has received and in particular the fact that we've created a NewCo, PGA TOUR Enterprises. I think the realization that there is an entity that can be invested into at the PGA TOUR and the uniqueness of being able to invest into a professional sports league of the caliber, quality and sustainability of the PGA TOUR, obviously has generated a lot of interest," Monahan explained.
"But in terms of alternatives, right now, you know, the sole conversation that we're having is the conversation we're having with PIF."
If anything, Jay Monahan has been consistent with his messaging since announcing the Saudi PIF deal. (Getty Images)
Again, this is the exact answer Monahan has to give having already worked in the shadows with the Saudis to build this framework, but that doesn't mean everything from this point forward is going to run as smoothly as he or the Saudis want it to.
With the recent addition of Tiger Woods to the Tour policy board, Tour players now outnumber the independent board members six to five giving them the final say in the Tour’s plans moving forward.
At the end of the day, Monahan has already stuck his neck out as far as he possibly can by striking this deal with the Saudi PIF in total secret. He has nothing left to lose by guaranteeing that everything will come to fruition that he and the Saudis have laid out in their framework agreement.
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